Snitz's murder spotlight

Did you know that only about 15-20% of murders are committed by strangers? Which completely disproves the axiom that you can never have too many friends.

Where are the nation’s highest murder rates?

There were 22,380 homicides in the US in 2023, or 6.8 homicides per 100,000 people. But rates, of course, vary by location. Where are rates highest, and where are they declining?

Ranking counties by the largest number of homicides and the homicide rate shows two different pictures.

USAFacts

Cook County in Illinois had the highest total homicides — 805 — at a rate of 15.8 per 100,000 people. It’s the largest county in the Chicago metro area. The second-most were in California’s Los Angeles County with 659 homicides, a rate of 6.8 per 100,000 people.

The homicide rate is generally a fairer way to understand these numbers because it adjusts for population size. It keeps us from comparing a lower number in a small county to a larger rate in a county twice its size.

The homicide rate per 100,000 people was highest in Shelby County, Tennessee, which is part of the Memphis metro area. The county had 372 homicides, or 40.9 per 100,000 people. St. Louis, Missouri, (which operates independently of the county) had 106 homicides, or 37.6 per 100,000.

Homicide rate and total homicides by large metros

From 2018 to 2023, murder rates rose in 71 of 97 large metro counties. The largest net homicide rate increase was in Shelby County, Tennessee, increasing by 16.6 homicides per 100,000. Washington, DC, followed with a rise of 15.4. Third was St. Clair County, Illinois (part of the St. Louis metro area), up by 11.7 homicides.

The largest percentage increases were +196.7% in Multnomah County, Oregon (home to Portland), +192.9% New York County, New York (Manhattan), and +150.0% in Hennepin County, Minnesota (home to Minneapolis).

Provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the national homicide rate at 6.0 people per 100,000 in 2024, though this data is subject to change.